The Division supports both the Minister and the Department in discharging our EU and Council of Europe responsibilities and in communicating and representing Ireland's interests at various meetings and events.

Key proposals and developments

We also monitor progress on key legislative and policy proposals arising in the Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) area. We keep abreast of key developments, engaging with other divisions on any issues that may need our attention, ensuring that any requiring our input are identified and are addressed at an early stage.

We coordinate and provide accurate and comprehensive briefing material to ministers to ensure that the Department’s policy positions are maintained and promoted, and that our contribution at meetings is optimised.

We agree policy lines with other divisions as required. We determine overall policy stances on cross-cutting issues, ensuring that these are conveyed in a clear and appropriate fashion at the relevant meetings and events.

Central to our division’s attendance at ministerial meetings is the provision of assistance and advice to the Minister, ensuring she is fully briefed so as to be able to make a full contribution.

The office also represents Ireland at various working parties of the Council of the European Union including the Article 36 Committee (CATS) which is a coordinating Committee in the area of Police and Judicial Cooperation in Criminal matters. IPD also services the working group on Schengen evaluation matters, the Council of Europe’s European Committee on Crime Problems (CDPC), and other working parties dealing with cross-cutting JHA matters as required.

It is also the responsibility of IPD to assist in facilitating greater governmental and Oireachtas engagement on JHA matters in line with the provisions of the Programme for Government.

The Department of the Taoiseach also has a central role in fostering EU engagement, and our staff attend Ministerial and interdepartmental co-ordination meetings on EU matters, always ensuring the Department’s interests are represented. These include the Cabinet Committee on European Affairs (CCEUA), the Senior Officials Group (SOG) and the Interdepartmental Committee on EU Engagement (ICEE).

The Permanent Representation brings together under one roof civil servants from nearly every Irish government department, making it Ireland's biggest diplomatic mission abroad. Its role is to represent Ireland's interests in the European Union, and to support the Permanent Representative (Ambassador) to the EU, in particular at Coreper (the Committee of Permanent Representatives).

The Permanent Representation offers assistance to Ministers and other delegates during their visits to Brussels, and is responsible for advancing Irish policy objectives and the Department’s mission in EU matters under the direction of the Department of Justice and Equality in Dublin.

Staff of the Permanent Representation participate in the various Council working groups dealing with Justice and Home Affairs issues and ensure good communication between the Department in Dublin and contacts in the EU institutions and other Member States.

Role of the Justice Attaché

The role of the Justice Attaché is to provide effective representation of Ireland's policy interests at the Council of Europe and its various committees. This broadly entails ensuring that Irish policy objectives are articulated and pursued in the relevant committees and that Council of Europe texts reflect, as much as possible, Ireland's key national priorities.

The role requires effective liaison with the Department of Justice and Equality and other government departments on justice related issues (including equality and integration) in order to ensure that Ireland's interests in these areas are properly represented and secured.